Tonal shrinks your gym into a touchscreen TV video – CNET

I'm burning out and this is not getting any easier yet.
This is not your average screen.
For starters, it has arms, but most importantly, it's got the strength of a body builder.
Tonal is basically an entire weight machine, plus the personal trainer, mounted on your wall.
So where is it hiding those clunky metal plates?
Well, it's not.
The weights are all digital, it's using an electromagnetic drive to generate up to 200 pounds of resistance.
So when I'm pulling here it doesn't feel like much, but if I increase the resistance say to like 30 pounds.
It actually feels like I'm pulling a physical weight like you would feel on a weight machine.
Even though, as you can see there's nothing behind, and then I'll just adjust it.
And the hardware is just one part of the equation.
Tonal also comes with built in coaches to guide you through work outs and help you achieve your personal goals.
Whether that's bulking up, losing weight, getting stronger or all of the above.
And it supports multiple users.
Once I logged my stats and preferences the machine had me take a fitness test to figure out how much I should be lifting.
Which already seems better than the weight guessing game I played at the gym.
Then you're ready to start a routine with a trainer of your choice.
Most of them are weight based for upper body, legs and core But you can mix it up and add different attachments to the arms to target different muscles.
And because the machine has real-time feedback about how much you're lifting, the speed, and even the quality of each rep, it can react in real time by either upping the resistance or lowering it if it feels like you're struggling.
It's pretty much like having your own sporter at the gym minus the embarrassment.
the company also says Total keeps track of your progress over time and modifies the exercises and resistance as you get stronger rather than just repeating the same old gym routine, this in theory means you get a more efficient workout with faster results.
But at $2,999 results won't come cheap.
The machine itself costs roughly what you'd expect to pay for a similar weight machine.
But then you also have factor in an installation fee, a $500 accessory kit, And the subscription to the training program which costs $49 a month.
But you may end up getting even more features down the line.
According to the company, future software updates could unlock other sensors and cameras currently dormant in the machine and bring an even more specialized training program to its users
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